


Of Sleeping Princes and Floating Lights

by oikawasthighs (floatingpastel)



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Fantasy, First Meetings, Gen, child of light au, i just love these kids so much you gotta understand, idk man
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-09
Updated: 2016-08-09
Packaged: 2018-08-07 18:01:15
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 840
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7724350
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/floatingpastel/pseuds/oikawasthighs
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>In which Prince Tooru, about to embark on the grandest adventure of his life, makes a friend.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Of Sleeping Princes and Floating Lights

**Author's Note:**

> inspired [by](http://shaerahaek.tumblr.com/post/148249817081/child-of-lightoikawa-and-igniculusiwaizumi-guess) [art](https://twitter.com/shaerahaek/status/759777202523299840) from shaerahaek

 

_The cedar tree symbolizes healing and protection._

  
Silence. Eerie and roaring silence. It's all that has ever been since Tooru found himself waking up in this place, cold and alone with nothing but his nightgown and a homesick heart.

He presses a small palm on the rough bark of a cedar tree, steadying himself as we trods the forest grounds barefeet. It hurts, and his feet are complaining of its wounds, but he can't lose himself now. His father must be worrying himself sick. Tooru needs to stay strong for him.

A stray root growing above ground trips him and he falls face first into the dirt. A rush of fear and uncertainty washes over him, filling him with despair. It's hopeless, it's no good, he's been walking for hours and yet he hasn't found a single living soul but those of wraiths in the night he has fortunately managed to avoid so far.

He's tired. He wants to go home.

Pillowing his face in his arms, he cries into them, snot smearing all over his sleeves and muffling his sobs for fear of attracting the attention of the frightening hounds roaming the forest. He stays like that for a minute, or ten, or sixty. He's not sure. Time feels different here.

When his tears have dried and his limbs have begun feeling again, he sits up.

And screams.

There, a few steps above him, is a floating ball of light.

Tooru falls backwards, quickly crawling back to get away from the light. The rough ground scratches his palms but he doesn't care, he needs to examine it from a safe distance.

The orb just floats, emitting a strange high-pitched humming sound and bobbing up and down on an invisible sea. It looks warm. Tooru eyes it cautiously, itchy curiosity tempting him to reach out and just... touch it...

"Why are you afraid?" It asks him.

Tooru jumps. It can talk!

"I can," the light replies, amused, making Tooru realize he just spoke aloud. Initially, the voice came from out of nowhere, but a face starts to form on its surface as it speaks. A gap in its lower half, what Tooru assumes to be its mouth, moves. "Are you Tooru?"

It knows his name?

"What's it to you?" He asks defiantly. "And I'm not afraid!"

"But you screamed when you saw me!"

"I did not!" Tooru denies furiously, heat travelling to his round cheeks. "I was just... I was surprised!"

"You wouldn't have been surprised if you weren't afraid!" The sphere argues, the voice of a boy yelling at Tooru, and Tooru does his best to muster his death glare, the one his father says could kill the royal guards if Tooru wants it to.

It glares back. Looking so closely and directly at a ball of light isn't doing wonders to his eyes, but he doesn't want to lose to this stupid ball who clearly doesn't know what he's talking about.

So there they are, a boy and a glowing sphere fuming at each other. Eventually though, Tooru's eyes starts to water, and his eyes, without his explicit consent, blink.

"Hah! I win," it declares smugly.

Tooru _laughs_. He laughs, clutching his stomach. The ball probably thinks he's insane now, but he just can't stop laughing. He falls to the ground, lying down on the grass and pounding his fists into the dirt. Tears fall again from his eyes, but it's of a different kind than before. If it's a better one, Tooru has yet to decide.

"What."

"Pffffft— It's just—haha—this is the first conversation I've had in a," Tooru wheezes. "A... a d-day, I think, and— hahaha! I can't believe balls of light talk! And hold staring contests!"

His breaths slow to normal, and he sighs in exhaustion, looking at the canopy of leaves above. They cover so much sky that Tooru can't even see one inkling of light, besides the one currently frowning at him like he's a madman.

"Are you done?"

Tooru grins. "Yeah, I'm done. I'm Tooru, by the way, and I'm six years old." The ball looks at him oddly. Tooru's grin widens. "What's your name? My father said you should shake someone's hand when you meet, but..."

"... Hajime. And I'm a day old."

"Really? Congratulations on being born, then. Why were you looking for me, Hajime?"

"I was sent here to guide you, Tooru."

Tooru sits up so suddenly that his head spins. "You can help me out of this forest?" He asks, giddy. Finally!

"I guess so, but you'll have to follow my lead," Hajime huffs with pride at his given mission. "Come on, she's waiting!"

Tooru agrees, and they amble on their way.

 

 

It's going to be a long adventure, of swords and crowns, of plant people and talking crows, of flight above volcanoes and long dives in underwater kingdoms, of deceit and love and betrayal and dark and light and everything in between, but things will be alright.

 

After all, Tooru just made his very first friend.

 

 

**Author's Note:**

> [twitter](https://twitter.com/youwatanabees)


End file.
